Our Weekend And What We Learned From It

We had a pretty jam packed, all around pretty great weekend. Although, we did learn a thing or 2 from it.

Friday night was really low key. We thought Brian was supposed to fly the next day so we didn't do much of anything!

Last minute, Brian didn't need to go into work so we decided to make the most of our day.  We hopped in the car and headed to our first location of the day.

1. Helen Hunt Falls in Cheyenne Canon Park

You step out of your car walk up a little path, and here are the falls. We were expecting a giant hike to the falls, but they were just right there. 

We did find a trail though and we just had to explore it.

Whoa that's a far ways down to fall, mom!

Snack break!

Beautiful views at the top

That's another waterfall although it's hard to see.

And look, I brought my real camera with!

Brady took this picture of us! I was pretty impressed! Although he took about 200 pictures of this exact same pose. Those were fun to delete.

WHAT WE LEARNED: Read the signs. Hard to tell, but it says moderate to difficult hike. People were amazed our kids were making it to the top. One lady even said, "If that little girl can do it, so can I, dang it!"  It was pretty steep and a hard hike for Layla who is 2.  Which resulted in a ton of whining and "I do it myself" only to have her fall. Oh the joys of toddlers.

 2. The Broadmoor

We were really close so we decided to drive the grounds. One word: beautiful!

WHAT WE LEARNED: We must absolutely stay here at least one night sans kids before we leave Colorado Springs.

 3. Bristol Brewery and The Principal's Office

We had heard about this brewery/restaurant that's in an old school. We were really close to it, so hey why not check it out?

It may have only been 12:20 but hey we just survived a hike with Layla, we live in the craft beer capital, and it's the weekend. And it was delicious.

Brian looking so Colorado-ian. That's probably a word. Probably.

The kids enjoyed the silverware and the people watching. 

WHAT WE LEARNED: It's ok to bring your kids to a brewery for lunch. The food here was delish, the beer was great, and it was a really neat place to see. Win.

We went home for some much needed naps and then it was on to our next location.

 4. Iron Bird Brewery

Brian's co-worker (who's in the Reserves) opened up a brewery so the majority of the squadron was going to support him.  It was a super last minute decision to go. They handed out cotton candy so the kids were happy.

And Brady got to play with my phone which he always enjoys. Not shown are the 100 pictures he took of people in the crowd. Yeah, those got deleted.

It was a fun time and another delish brewery.

WHAT WE LEARNED: Ehhh 2 breweries in 1 day, not one of our finest parenting decisions. Although the first one we ate at and the the second one we spent maybe 45 minutes there?  And it was to support Brian's co-workers. But still, probably won't do that again.

Sunday we went to church! Hooray! Hallelujah! Brian has been taking Brady lately but we really wanted to try going with miss "I speak when I want, I say what I want, as loud as I want and I don't care who hears it" Layla. I'm proud to say we sat in the NORMAL section of church for about 95% of the time! We were in the cry room at the very end when Layla got the hiccups and kept saying loudly, "I HAVE THE HICCUPS! CAN WE GO HOME NOW?" No pictures were taken because, well, I just did not have the time. One day I will look back and laugh.

5. Waldo Canyon Burn Scar

You must think I have an obsession with forest fires. I really don't but I'd been meaning to drive up here to see what it looked like up close. You can tell even from our house that it looks so different than it used to but up close it's a whole different game. I didn't get many pictures since we were driving but seeing the devastation even 2 years later is just heartbreaking.

WHAT WE LEARNED: We are so, so lucky. And we just pray there are no more fires here. 

6. Air Force Academy Commissary

While kids were napping, I attempted the commissary (for those not military, it's just basically a grocery store on base). I'm not usually a commissary shopper but they really do have good prices and sometimes it's just worth the headache, especially when I'm making a huge shopping trip.

WHAT I LEARNED: Sunday afternoons, not a good time to go.  I had gone on a Sunday evening last time and it was virtually dead. Not so just a few hours before that.  

7. My kitchen

To close out the day I decided to try a new Pioneer Woman recipe: Baked Ziti. Oh my gosh yum.

WHAT I LEARNED: I think Pioneer Woman can do no wrong. I have not tried a recipe of hers that I haven't loved. Seriously, try it!

After our busy, busy weekend with full bellies we retreated to the family room for Rio 2.

WHAT WE LEARNED: Well my brain basically turned to mush watching this movie but a weekend together, nothing beats that!